Current:Home > FinanceContact restored with NASA’s Voyager 1 space probe-LoTradeCoin
Contact restored with NASA’s Voyager 1 space probe
View Date:2024-12-23 22:44:44
Contact restored.
That was the message relieved NASA officials shared after the agency regained full contact with the Voyager 1 space probe, the most distant human-made object in the universe, scientists announced Monday.
For the first time since November, the spacecraft is now returning usable data about the health and status of its onboard engineering systems, NASA said in a news release.
The 46-year-old pioneering probe, now some 15.1 billion miles from Earth, has continually defied expectations for its lifespan as it ventures further into the uncharted territory of the cosmos.
More:Voyager 1 is 15 billion miles from home and broken. Here's how NASA is trying to fix it.
Computer experts to the rescue
It wasn't as easy as hitting Control-Alt-Delete, but top experts at NASA and CalTech were able to fix the balky, ancient computer on board the probe that was causing the communication breakdown – at least for now.
A computer problem aboard Voyager 1 on Nov. 14, 2023, corrupted the stream of science and engineering data the craft sent to Earth, making it unreadable.
Although the radio signal from the spacecraft had never ceased its connection to ground control operators on Earth during the computer problem, that signal had not carried any usable data since November, NASA said. After some serious sleuthing to fix the onboard computer, that changed on April 20, when NASA finally received usable data.
In interstellar space
The probe and its twin, Voyager 2, are the only spacecraft to ever fly in interstellar space (the space between stars).
Voyager 2 continues to operate normally, NASA reports. Launched over 46 years ago, the twin Voyager 2 spacecraft are standouts on two fronts: they've operated the longest and traveled the farthest of any spacecraft ever.
Before the start of their interstellar exploration, both probes flew by Saturn and Jupiter, and Voyager 2 flew by Uranus and Neptune.
More:NASA gave Voyager 1 a 'poke' amid communication woes. Here's why the response was encouraging.
They were designed to last five years, but have become the longest-operating spacecraft in history. Both carry gold-plated copper discs containing sounds and images from Earth, contents that were chosen by a team headed by celebrity astronomer Carl Sagan.
For perspective, it was the summer of 1977 when the Voyager probes launched from Earth. Star Wars was number one at the box office, Jimmy Carter was in the second year of his presidency, and Elvis Presley's death had just hit everyone hard.
Contributing: Eric Lagatta, George Petras, USA TODAY
veryGood! (662)
Related
- Nearly 80,000 pounds of Costco butter recalled for missing 'Contains Milk statement': FDA
- Texas Gov. Greg Abbott denies he's advocating shooting migrants crossing Texas-Mexico border
- A global day of protests draws thousands in London and other cities in pro-Palestinian marches
- Spoilers! Why 'American Fiction' ends with an 'important' scene of Black representation
- College football top five gets overhaul as Georgia, Miami both tumble in US LBM Coaches Poll
- Margaritaville license plates, Jimmy Buffett highway proposed to honor late Florida singer
- Friends scripts that were thrown in the garbage decades ago in London now up for auction
- More stunning NFL coach firings to come? Keep an eye on high-pressure wild-card games
- California researchers discover mysterious, gelatinous new sea slug
- Texas Gov. Greg Abbott denies he's advocating shooting migrants crossing Texas-Mexico border
Ranking
- Kyle Richards Shares an Amazing Bottega Dupe From Amazon Along With Her Favorite Fall Trends
- Millions of Americans face below-zero temperatures as weekend storms bring more Arctic air and snow
- Crypto's Nazi problem: With few rules to stop them, white supremacists fundraise for hate
- Florida woman's killer identified after nearly 4 decades; suspect used 3 different names
- DWTS' Gleb Savchenko Shares Why He Ended Brooks Nader Romance Through Text Message
- Death toll rises to 13 in a coal mine accident in central China
- Finneas says working with sister Billie Eilish requires total vulnerability
- A huge fire engulfs a warehouse in Russia outside the city of St Petersburg
Recommendation
-
Stop What You're Doing—Moo Deng Just Dropped Her First Single
-
Packers QB Jordan Love helps college student whose car was stuck in the snow
-
As legal challenges mount, some companies retool diversity and inclusion programs
-
Explosive device kills 5 Pakistani soldiers in country’s southwest
-
'Yellowstone' premiere: Record ratings, Rip's ride and Billy Klapper's tribute
-
Nico Collins' quiet rise with Texans reflects standout receiver's soft-spoken style
-
Why Los Angeles Rams Quarterback Matthew Stafford Is the MVP of Football Girl Dads
-
The True Story Behind Apple TV+'s Black Bird